Boys volleyball: Prospect outlasts Hersey in MSL East battle

Prospect coach Mike Riedy said that junior outside hitter Marc Ruffolo had a bit of a shaky start to the season, but now he's "got his sea legs under him."

That might explain how Ruffolo was able to 'dive' into the stands for an almost unbelievable save that gave a point - and the first set Wednesday night against Hersey - to the Knights.

With Prospect leading the first game 24-22, Ruffolo was somehow able to track down a deflection before it landed it the first row of the bleachers, and swat it back into play.

The Knights got the ball back over the net, and it led to a set-winning side out in a Prospect 25-22, 24-19 boys volleyball win over visiting Hersey.

The Knights improved to 2-0 in the Mid-Suburban East, and 6-4 overall.

"He's been playing some great ball," said Riedy of Ruffolo, "and he gets a lot of kills that he shouldn't get. He came out and worked all day yesterday on his serve and you saw the results today. He has a beautiful drop serve that just took (Hersey) out of system numerous times tonight."

Knights senior outside hitter Ryan Uemura was almost unstoppable against the Huskies, both on attack with double-digit kills, and also from the service line.

Uemura had 4 aces midway through the first set that gave the Knights a commanding lead.

"He's so consistent," said Riedy of Uemura, "and what you saw tonight was just the standard for his play.

"The nice thing is about our team is a lot of the guys are stepping up and trying to get to Ryan's level - and a lot of times, they're succeeding."

The aces from Uemura led Prospect to a 6-point lead midway through game one, but Hersey fought back and a tip kill by Justin Arrowood gave the Huskies a 21-20 advantage.

Then a kill from Ruffolo tied the set up and Prospect went on from there.

"We struggled with our passing," said Hersey coach Laura Gerber, "and without that passing, we had a hard time running our offense.

"We let them run off seven straight serves and we were able to even things out but then, (Prospect) had some great digs that kept them in the game. Hopefully, next time, that'll be us."

Hersey's Nate Meyer played a strong match overall, and his cross-court kill halfway through the second set gave the Huskies a 1-point lead.

Then Prospect went on a run, and when 6-foot-2 freshman setter Ryan Cook had a block at the net, the score was 24-19 Knights.

"He's come into his own," said Riedy of Cook. "You can imagine how rough it is being a frosh and coming in to a squad with all juniors and seniors, but he's adapted very well and is doing a great job."

A bump from Prospect junior libero Ben Schram, a set from Cook then a final kill from Uemura handed the match win to the Knights.

"I saw some good things tonight," said Gerber. "Nate had some good shots, but they have a really nice setter (Cook) who was moving the ball around. We had a tough time reading where he was going."